Depletion of selenium in blood, liver and muscle from beef heifers previously fed forages containing high levels of selenium.

Beef heifers which had grazed 'Jose' tall wheatgrass (TWG; Thinopyrum ponticum var. 'Jose'; 10 heifers) and creeping wildrye (CWR; Leymus triticoides var. 'Rio'; 10 heifers) with high levels of Se (>2 mg/kg DM) due to growth in saline soils, accumulated high Se levels in blood, liver and muscle (Juchem et al., 2012). We determined the decrease in Se levels in blood, liver and muscle from these heifers, particularly the decrease of Se in muscle, in order to determine the maximum feeding length of a low Se diet (LSeD) required sustaining Se-enriched beef. Immediately after grazing, all heifers were fed a LSeD containing <0.30 mg/kg DM for 209 d. Blood, liver and muscle samples, as well as body weight (BW), were collected at the beginning and end of the LSeD feeding period and at intermediate times. After grazing, CWR and TWG heifers had similar BW, but TWG heifers had higher levels of Se in whole blood (1.19 versus 0.81 mg/L), liver (2.67 versus 2.12 mg/kg wet weight (WW)), and muscle tissue (0.87 versus 0.63 mg/kg WW) than CWR heifers. The Se levels decreased with exposure time to the LSeD and, at 82 d of feeding the LSeD, Se levels were 77 (liver), 49 (blood) and 31% (muscle) lower. The BW gains for both groups were ~0.5 kg/d during the first 82 d of feeding, but increased thereafter. Levels of Cu in serum (0.28 versus 0.50 mg/L) and liver (1.14 versus 22.9 mg/kg WW) were lower at the end of grazing in TWG heifers, and suggested a potential Cu deficiency. Grazing forages with high Se levels can result in Se-enriched beef, but a LSeD feeding period of <82 d is required to maintain enrichment.

Grazing as an alternative for utilization of saline-sodic soils in the San Joaquin Valley: selenium accretion and performance of beef heifers.

Two experiments were conducted to evaluate Se accumulation and health of non-pregnant, non-breeding beef cattle grazing on forages with a high Se content due to irrigation with saline drainage water. Heifers grazed experimental pastures of "Jose" tall wheatgrass (TWG; Thinopyrum ponticum var. "Jose") and creeping wildrye (CWR; Leymus triticoides var. "Rio") for 190 days in Experiment 1 (2007) and for 165 days in Experiment 2 (2008). In experiment 1, mean Se concentrations were similar in TWG and CWR herbage (4.0 versus 3.7 ± 0.26 mg/kg dry weight; p=0.34) as was crude protein (113 versus 114 ± 7.9 g/kg dry weight; p=0.94). Concentrations of Se in blood increased by 300% during the grazing period, and were similar for heifers grazing the TWG or CWR pastures (0.94 versus 0.87 ± 0.03 mg/kg; p=0.89). Heifers grazing on TWG gained more body weight than did heifers grazing on CWR (0.59 versus 0.27 ± 0.07 kg/days; p<0.01). In experiment 2, concentration of Se (4.0 versus 2.8 mg/kg ± 0.19 mg/kg dry weight; p<0.01) and crude protein (79 versus 90 ± 5.6 g/kg dry weight; p<0.01) differed, for TWG and CWR, respectively. Within 20 days, Se concentrations in blood had increased by 300% and by nearly 200% in heifers grazing on TWG or CWR. All data cited are least square means ± standard error of the mean. Data from our two grazing seasons are consistent in demonstrating the safety of grazing beef cattle for a period of up to 6 months on TWG and CWR forages having high levels of Se due to irrigation with saline drainage water. This suggests that forage production using saline drainage water is a viable alternative for saline soils with limited potential for producing high value, salt-sensitive, crops.